Dissecting The Uninsured Hispanics Phenomenon

It is a fact that although Hispanics comprise roughly 17% of our population, they also represent approximately 1/3 of all uninsured Americans. Suffice it to say that if Hispanics were not included in the computation and statistics for uninsured Americans, our national problem would be substantially reduced. It is also a fact that people without health insurance live less healthy lives and also have a shortened life span. All of this adds to bigger problems within our society that need to be addressed. Hispanics are now the largest minority group in the United States and are projected to grow to become and represent a large portion of our society in the coming decades. Our understanding of the word Hispanic carries its own set of problems and misunderstandings that beg for clarification and further understanding within our mainstream society. As a Hispanic American living in the United States, I am proud of this country, my country, and the efforts and struggles that together we have overcome on many issues. Some of which still are a work in process.

Healthcare as a whole, and for that matter health insurance as an industry, is in our society quite complex even for the highly educated. To really understand healthcare we must separate its components, separate its objectives, and understand how these are perceived by our society. The components are the providers, patients, administrators, regulators, capitalists, and politicians. They all play a role and their objectives many times clash with one another. Nevertheless, lets start with the two most important components; providers and patients. The conversation has to start and also end here. Their objectives are:

1. Basic healthcare (routine doctor visits, check-ups, tests, minor ailments, preventative care, and disease management). These are services that are routine in nature and occur more frequently. A large part of our dilemma today is that patients do not receive these services as much as they should. If it were, these would avoid many complications of illnesses and would assist greatly in reducing higher healthcare costs.

2.Catastrophic care (unforeseen disease, accidents, and major illnesses, etc.) These are services and care that are more costly and that are difficult to predict the who, what, when, and where. They are truly the reason for insurance in the first place, the risk we need to all share to protect one another.
Now, if only it were as simple as it may appear to be explained in the paragraph above. The reality is that it is not. This is only part of the reason of why Hispanics represent such a high percentage of uninsureds. They feel disconnected, confused, and basically as outsiders in the large and complex maze that is our healthcare system. Just as important, is that our healthcare industry has combined Hispanics as a one-fit-all demographic and it is not. Although we share many factors that bind us together as a group, there also many differences and preferences that make us unique. Our healthcare industry has failed to tap into these differences and market to them differently. In addition, there are economic issues that Hispanics face that make their access to healthcare more difficult.

It is sad and frustrating that this has not been addressed with as much fervor as it deserves. Hispanics today play a large role within our society and many struggle to make ends meet, without being able to afford and attain quality healthcare. There are many, many challenges ahead, yet we must fight to conquer this soon. As healthcare reform is being discussed in the halls of Congress, the largest group of uninsureds awaits some answers and deservedly so. Yet, although some level of government assistance is needed, Hispanics do not want handouts, socialized medicine, or a public government run insurance plan. They want simple and fair rules for everyone.